Editorials of newspapers are supposed to be the encapsulation of the outfits thoughts, constructive criticism, advice, warning among others. The quality and maturity of an editorial is a testimony to the erudition and wisdom of the team that  makes up the media outfit. That is what we expect from a newspaper of THE PUNCH status. As a paper that self-proclaims itself as the most widely read paper, it was expected that it would keep its journalistic duty sacred and beyond parochial sentiments.
Nigerians awoke to a sensational editorial from the Punch on the 21^st January, 2014 with the headline –Aregbesola’s Misguided Church Project . had it been one of the soft-sell newspapers lacking depth and proper organization we would not have bothered, but for a highly regarded paper to base its thoughts on beer-parlour gist straight from the mouth of frustrated opposition who having nothing to oppose have resorted to blackmail and religious sensationalism, is incomprehensible. The first paragraph  of the piece immediately exposed the jaundiced thought-line for what it is- hogwash (apologies to PUNCH editorial!). The paragraph states as follows-
Rauf Aregbesola, the Governor of Osun State, appears impervious to moderation in matters religious. His latest misadventure is to purchase a piece of land to build a church as part of his queer concept of ‘development’.
Aregbesola did not swear oath to govern Osun on PUNCH editor’s definition of moderation or development. The governor swore to an oath in the seventh schedule of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) which is to do right to all manner of people, according to law, without fear or favour, affection or ill-will. PUNCH’s grouse is not the unconstitutionality of Aregbesola’s actions but its uncouthness and uncompromising nature in activating hitherto inactive provisions of the Constitution for the benefit of his people.
The Editorial’s warped comment also failed to understand the essence of a secular state. While Section 10 of the Constitution establishes the secularity of the Nigerian State, it is not however, ignorant of the religious passion of the people therein, which was why section 38 provides for an elaborate right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. It is regrettable that an organization such as PUNCH which ought to be a citadel of letters continuously fails to grasp the meaning of secularism. The preamble to our constitution states … having firmly and solemnly resolved: to live in unity and harmony as one indivisible and indissoluble Sovereign Nation under God… Our secularity does not make us Godless or display official cockishness towards people’s mode of expressing their religious beliefs. Secularism seeks to ensure and protect religious belief and practice for all citizens. Secularism is not about curtailing religious freedoms; it is about ensuring that the freedoms of thought and conscience apply equally to all believers and non believers alike. (see www.secularism.org.uk)
What is all these hoopla all about anyway? In the build-up to the 2007 gubernatorial election, Aregbesola promised to leverage on Osun’s unique history of being the birthplace of some of the most successful contemporary church founders in the world. He reasoned that being the homeland of Prophet Ayo Babalola (Christ Apostolic Church); Pastor Adeboye (Redeemed Christian Church of God); Pastor W.F. Kumuyi (Deeper Life Bible Church); Prophet Obadare (CAC); Prophet Fakeye (Cherubim and Seraphim Movement); Pastor Mathew Ashimolowo (Kingsway International Christian Centre) among many others the state must deplore this resource to its socio-religious and economic advantage. This informed the need to encourage and support the Christian community to open a 200,000 capacity worship centre for use by all denominations in the State.
While campaigning at Ilesa, the Odo-Iju community in Atakunmosa West LG donated a parcel of land for the project in order for it to host such a strategic site. This promise was followed up by a letter which was accepted by the government and the sum of fifty one million was paid to the community for compensation on economic crops as every such gifts are usually done by any sane government. This uncomplicated issue was what PUNCH decided to latch on to berate a governor for fulfilling his electoral promise.
It is amazing that Punch has no qualms whatsoever with the multi-billion naira National Mosque and Christian Ecumenical Centre in Abuja, built with government money; the hosting of the largest Christmas carol in the world by Akwa-Ibom State worth hundreds of millions among many others. Every government and its people decide and define what they want, not a parochial editorial. Chief Obafemi Awolowo of blessed memory had a pristine foresight when he pioneered the establishment of Christian and Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board in the 1950s. This was not regarded as religious bigotry nor bribery as PUNCH would have termed it. That vision has succeeded in helping many Nigerians fulfill their life-long duty to their God, thereby promoting harmony and peace.
It is an abuse of language and privilege for a newspaper to regard the fulfillment of an electoral promise as bribery or Greek gift to the Christian body. Christians are intelligent enough to hold their own brief on this matter, however, we must point out that this latest campaign of calumny to set a religious body against the Governor has become an over-blown trumpet, of which we know who the trumpeters are- PDP and its hangers-on. The same assertions made by the PUNCH editorial has been severally piped, though less intelligibly, by the ill-educated chairman of the PDP in Osun. It would be bizarre for a newspaper of PUNCH standing to translate itself to become the official megaphone of the Osun PDP. If however, it wishes to become such, so be it.
It is hypocritical and highly unfortunate that a respected Newspaper such as PUNCH would regard the development in Osun as queer!  Tell me, what is queer about providing school uniforms for 750,000 students and pupils? what is queer about feeding over 250,000 pupils daily with nutritious home-grown foods? what is queer about distributing 150,000 e-learning device to students where all their books and past questions are stored for use? please tell me what is queer about employment of over 3000 teachers and massive teacher training? What is queer about building and equipping of 170 new schools in a state hitherto popular for acute shortage of educational infrastructure?
Even the blind can see real development going on in Osun. Can anyone deny the construction of 10km roads in each of the 30 local governments and one area office? Can we deny the construction of modern state of the art roads all over the State? Can PUNCH pretend to be ignorant of the statistics being reeled out by Federal Government and international organizations attesting to the verifiable developments taking place in Osun. A state with the lowest unemployment rate in the country (per National Bureau of Statistics); the state with the lowest crime rate as confirmed by the chairman of the Police Service Commission, Sir Mike Okiro among many other undisputable developmental feats recorded by Aregbesola government is there for all to see.
It is unfortunate that a newspaper establishment would set up itself to be the persecutor-in-chief of a federating unit in Nigeria. Many articles, comments and columns in the paper over time has attacked the policies of Ogbeni Aregbesola. An earlier piece, Christians Against Aregbesola by Ms. Abimbola Adelakun on 17^th October, 2013 showed the nadir which PUNCH’s arm-chair criticism efforts have gone. This piece, is therefore a continuation of such shenanigans. We are however not fazed by these baseless vituperations, our comfort rests in the fact that the people of Osun are daily witnessing a breath of fresh air which had eluded them for so long.
For the avoidance of doubt, let it be known to all our traducers that the Government of the State of Osun as presently constituted will continue to provide enabling environment for her people to live and practice their religion without let or hinderance as exemplified in the freedom of thought and conscience broadly allowed in the constitution and nothing will detract us from this sacred duty as it is a pact we have made with our people. Ours is a government of conviction and not of convenience!
Ibrahim Lawal is a Senior Special Assistant to the Governor in the Ministry of Regional Integration and Special Duties.

By its latest editorial of Tuesday, January 21, 2104 captioned ‘Aregbesola’s misguided church project’ has further revealed its open antagonism to the government of Mr. Aregbesola and consolidated itself as the official mouthpiece of mindless opposition in Osun. A mere cursory perusal of the Punch reportage and feature story on Aregbesola’s program in the past couple of months has shown a clear attitude of deliberate negative and antagonistic predisposition without any modicum of regard for facts, accurate reporting and some sense of objectivity. We have read and studied the editorial and it will be shown that the editorial is a hatchet job and merely calculated to malign the Governor and the Government of the State.
Subtle Allegation of Religious Extremism
From the start, the obvious intention of the writers of the editorial became manifest. It was stated that Aregbesola “appears impervious to moderation in matters religious”. This clear meaning of this euphemistic assertion is that the governor is a religious extremist. Assuming, without conceding, that the contention of the editors that it was wrong for the state to construct the Open Heavens Arena was correct, does this make Aregbesola a religious extremist. By parity of reasoning, it would mean that Governor Godswill Akpabio is an extremist for reportedly spending hundreds of million of Naira on Christmas Carol or that simply escaped the attention the Punch editorial team. In which religion is Aregbesola an extremist when in the same editorial, the allegation is that it was wrong for Aregbesola to do the bidding of all religious groups. What are the facts upon which the damning opening assertion of punch editors is based beyond an apparent intention to demonize the Governor without basis? We challenge the Punch editorial team to make public the facts to justify the calumnious assertion that Aregbesola “appears impervious to moderation in matters religion”.
Purchase of Farmland?
The clear mischief of the Punch editorial came to fore when it asserted: “While previous governments in Osun have sought to expand farmlands for production and encourage farmers, Osun State in 2014 is acquiring farmland to build an interdenominational center.”
First, it is deliberate falsehood to state that farmland was acquired for the proposed interdenominational center. The land for the center was a fallow land given by the communities to the government and compensation was only paid for economic trees on the land as is customary with any land acquired by government for any purpose whatsoever. We challenge Punch to publish the picture of the farmland on the site of the center.
Secondly, it is calumnious to create an impression that the present Osun government is not expanding farmland and encouraging farmers. At the risk of sounding immodest, there has never been a government in the history of the state that has taken intervention in agriculture than Aregbesola Administration. Are the Punch editors claiming ignorance of the many successes of the achievements of the flagship agriculture intervention programs of Aregbesola’s government in agriculture like Osun Rural Enterprise and Agriculture Program (OREAP); Quick Intervention Program (QUIP) under which billions of Naira were given to support farmers; Rural Access Mobility Program (RAMP) under which many kilometers of rural roads and bridges were constructed; Land Clearing Program under which several acres of land were acquired and cleared and given freely for agriculture purposes.
Deliberate Distortions of State and Religions In Nigeria
One is at loss whether the esteemed editors of the Punch do not know the difference between a church and the intended open Heavens Worship Center. Perhaps it is part of the deliberate get up of the scandalous write-up. The editorial labored to criticize the proposed Open Heavens Worship Center and that its concern is that it “is about shocking lack of understanding of what are the functions of government”.  This is rather too capricious because across all governments in Nigeria, there has been involvement of governments in construction/rehabilitation of religious centers and institutions. Were there no involvement of governments in the construction of the National Ecumenical Centers and the National Mosque? The Church inside the Aso Villa was also built by private enterprise? There are appears to be confusion or apparent mischief by the Punch editors treating secular and multi-religious states as identical. In all honesty, all the vituperations by the Punch editors would have been justified assuming Nigeria is a secular state. Alas! Nigeria is a multi-religious states and that is why all levels of governments in Nigeria, with Osun not an exception has to patronized, as a matter of duty all religious organizations. It is in that sense that worship centers are either built or supported by all governments without exceptions and also the expenditure on Christians and Muslims pilgrims Welfare Boards. We challenge the Punch to come up with evidence that in Nigeria, it is only the State of Osun that is assisting with facilities for religious worship.
Casual Dismissal of Economic Rationale For the Project
Apparently set in its outright castigation mission, the Punch derogatorily dismissed economic benefits arguments set to be put forward by two government functionaries as “hogwash” without demonstrating how same is so. A sincere editorial would have ventured to demonstrate the falsity of the contentions.
However, the truth is that it can never be contested that any facility that can attract thousands of people will generate serious economic benefits. For example, in 2013, the Osun government supported the Baptist in hosting its Annual Baptist convention, which attracted thousands of people to the State, and the traders and entrepreneurs in the state derived serious economic and commercial benefits. Can anyone honestly deny that the construction been contemplated will not support local economy and open up the areas to further development?
False Allegation and Instigation of Christian Association of Nigeria against the Government
It would also appear that aside the obvious intention to malign the Governor; the editorial is also intended to falsely instigate the leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria and indeed Christians in the state against the governor. The Punch described the project as Greek Gift without demonstrating how is it a Greek Gift. Also, in bad taste is the reference of a project that has the endorsement of all relevant stakeholders as a “bribe” or “baleful political gimmick”. Bribe to achieve what purpose? Perhaps, the editors of the Punch are not aware that the Government has also improved facilities at Osun Grove and World Ifa Temple at Oke-Itase, Ile Ife for traditional religious worshipers and as well support rehabilitation of Muslim Worship Centers too. So, where is the Greek Gift? Also, the government supported the Baptist in the State in hosting its annual Convention and the rehabilitation of the Convention ground and yet did the not stop the Baptist for criticizing the government when it has difference with it on the implementation of the school reclassification program. We view the instigation of the Christians against the project as irresponsible of a national news organ and calculated to cause division among religious groups in Osun. The Punch editorial also falsely quotes the Nigerian Constitution out of context as part of its deliberate misinformation of the Nigerian people. In any events, all available facts in Osun showed that equality of treatment among all faiths and the Government practices religions and the Punch apparently does not like this. Remember that it was the Punch that came out to attack the declaration of Hijrah as a public holiday in another editorial full of lies and capricious assertions like the present one.
Selective Use of Data
Just like in its editorial attacking the Hijrah holiday, the present editorial is also guilty of deliberate distortion of data to prove wrong assertion. The editorial claimed that the most functional political systems and lower crime rate are those that separate state from religion. One would ask the Punch whether Saudi Arabia and the Vatican separate state from religion and if not, whether they are not functional political systems and have high criminal rate. An editorial must be well grounded in data to back its assertions. The present one appears to be bereft of that.
Developmental Focus of Aregbesola
The way the editorial was concluded was as if Aregbesola has neglected needed areas of development in the State. This is another way of the Punch editorial desire to call a dog a bad name in other to hang it. There is no doubt that the three years of Aregbesola has brought serious improvement into all the facets referred to by Punch, that is, “health, education, infrastructure, job creation, agriculture and industrialization”. The records are there for all discerning minds.

IT was a historic moment for Nigeria and Africa on Wednesday as the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) in the House of Commons, London, United Kingdom commended the Osun Elementary School Feeding and Health Programme (O’MEALS) as a successful model to be copied worldwide.
Governor of Osun State, Mr Rauf Aregbesola received loud applause as he made eloquent statistical presentation before the parliamentary body during which he advocated the use of biometric registration of beneficiaries of the Home Grown School Feeding programme worldwide to eliminate corruption and guarantee transparency.
To guarantee sustainable future for Nigeria, the governor called for the adoption of O’MEALS programme across the nation with appropriate legislative backing and extension to the first nine years of schooling.
At the meeting presided over by Lord Cameron of Dillington, Governor Aregbesola submitted before the world audience gathered in Committee Room 9 of the House of Commons that technology remained the best way to address the concerns of development partners and international donors on the issue of corruption.
Addressing the concerns of development partners on what was referred to as all-pervading corruption through which project funds were usually lost in the past, the governor expressed the conviction that once beneficiaries of the programme are registered biometrically, banks that are linked with the programme funding would rely on the data to process payment and ensure that no fund is lost at the implementation stage.
“Technology remains the only effective way to remove corruption from the implementation of the Home Grown School Feeding programme. Once the technology of biometric registration is introduced for beneficiaries, the data is linked to settle the banks and through that, the vendors are paid. Beneficiaries are then able to register their biometric features through the Point of Sales (POS) terminals to guarantee a transparent, corruption-free and efficient HGSF system worldwide”, he said.
All the four speakers including Professor Donald Bundy, the Lead Health and Education Specialist of the World Bank; Mr Peter Rodrigues, the Chief of School Feeding and Chronic Hunger Unit of the World Food Programme (WFP), Ms. Boitshepo Bibi Giyose of NEPAD and Professor Josephine Kiamba, the Senior Technical Adviser of the Partnership for Child Development, Imperial College, London, lauded Governor Aregbesola for successfully implementing the O’MEALS despite the challenging financial situation of his state.
TRIBUNE

As part of its six integral action plan of restoring healthy living, Osun State government has purchased drugs and consumables worth N1.7 billion.
This is apart from the upgrading, rehabilitation and renovation of nine State Hospitals across the state at the cost of over N1bn.
The state hospitals are in Osogbo, Ikirun, Ikire Ilesa, Ila, Ede, Ile-Ife, Iwo and Ipetu Ijesha. Wale Bolorunduro, commissioner for finance in the State of Osun, who was the guest of the month of the Oyo State Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) said the move by the state to renovate, rehabilitate and upgrade the hospitals is to ensure adequate healthcare delivery service in the state hospitals.
Answering questions after presenting a paper entitled “Improving Public Finance for Better Governance: The Example of the State of Osun,” noted that the Rauf Aregbesola-led administration is anchored on a six point integral action of banishing poverty, banishing hunger, banishing unemployment, promoting functional education, enhancing communal peace and progress as well as restoring healthy living.
He however pointed out that Aregbesola has fulfilled his promises in providing adequate healthcare service delivery to the people.
To minimise malaria, the Finance Commissioner told journalists that the “Ipinle Omoluabi” embarked on urban renewal and dredging of waterways coupled with good food served pupils in schools under the “O Meals” programme of the State government. Bolorunduro said the dredging of the waterways had helped to reduce the incident of communicable diseases.
The state, he also stressed, embarked on fumigation to further bring down malaria occurrence in the state. He stated that once the ecological and environment verification are completed, fumigation of the airspace will be done.
Temitope Ilori, commissioner for health in the state had urged the Osun people to be health conscious in this year but assured that the government would remain committed to adequate healthcare delivery.
The health commissioner who said the state government spent a lot on the renovation of the hospitals and purchase of ambulances added that healthcare is basically free.
“Things like consultation, opening card, admission are done freely and even 80 percent of the drugs are given out free to patients, drugs for common ailments like hypertension, diabetes, malaria and so on, are free, irrespective of age and sex,” she added.
She further revealed that Vitamin A, deworming tablets, and blood tonics are given to pregnant women in state hospitals.
BUSINESSDAY

After reading the editorial of The PUNCH newspaper of Tuesday January 21, 2014, titled: “Aregbesola’s misguided church project”, every discerning reader will be compelled to ask: What is the motive behind the write-up that would conveniently pass for a desperate attempt at promoting religious tension especially in a state where faith is immaterial in how the citizens relate with one another?
In summary, the editorial accused Governor Rauf Aregbesola of Osun of lacking clear understanding of core functions of government simply because his administration embarks on the construction of a 200,000 capacity interdenominational worship centre in the state. The editorial went on to state that it is a taboo for any government to dabble into matters of religion and that rather than face issues of development especially using agriculture, the government is busy taking over lands from farmers who ought to cultivate the lands for food productions.
Perhaps what sounds most ridiculous in all the claims is that the Open Heavens Christian Convention Centre amounts to a “bribe” to silence a section of Christians in the state who had viewed with suspicion some of the administration’s programmes and policies and had tagged some of the policies anti-Christian in what remains a largely unsubstantiated claim.
For the avoidance of doubt, the issue of a massive worship centre could not have been an after-thought for as early as one week after his November 27, 2010 inauguration, Governor Aregbesola had chosen the December 4, 2010 occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Ilesa Grammar School to announce the state’s plan to embark on the project.
Those in attendance include the highly revered General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God; Pastor E.A Adeboye, Prof Wale Omole, Prof Oye Ibidapo-Obe, Justice Belgore, Mr. Tunde Oloko, Oba  Adekunle Aromolaran and other eminent Nigerians. This was apart from pre-election promise over the same issue.
The Governor repeated this pledge on several subsequent occasions especially during the convocation ceremony of the Joseph Ayo Babalola University, in Ikeji-Arakeji  in 2012 and the visit of Pa Adeboye to him at the Government House as part of Adeboye’s tour of the Let’s Go A Fishing programme in 2012.
Of course, the idea of a worship centre was not just a happenstance as the editorial sought to make it look. It emanated from the realization that many famous church leaders have their roots in Osun and precisely Ilesa and its environs. Among these are Pastor Adeboye of RCCG; Late Joseph Ayo Babalola, who was the first indigenous Christian evangelist from Ilesa, WF Kumuyi, late Prophet T.O Obadare, Pastor Mathew Ashimolowo, Pastor Kayode Abiara, Prophet G. O. Fakeye and a host of others.
It must be stated that the land for the project was freely given to the State by the community through the Looja of Odo-Iju in Atakunmosa-West Local Government Area; Engr. Adelekun. The compensation recently paid that was mischievously reported by the PUNCH was government’s way of supporting the people of the community for the high sense of patriotism displayed in releasing their lands for development purposes.
The bribery insinuation takes the argument to an all-low; albeit, pedestrian nadir. How wrong could the PUNCH be insinuating bribery and ominous gift! Bribe for who? And for what?
At the heart of every policy of the current administration is rapid economic growth of the state and immediate liberation of the people from grinding poverty. For instance, as ordinary as it looks, the seasonal use of train to transport Osun indigenes to the state during festivities free of charge is to increase inward travel and encourage more people to visit the state.
Every serious government must recognize what potentials there are and exploit that for its people’s economic advancement. Just as you have religious tourism, there is medical tourism popular in Germany and lately United Arab Emirate.
Had the economic development of Osun been a major concern of the PUNCH editorial, it would have examined the huge economic potentials that lie in the congregation of about 200,000 visitors/worshippers to our state weekly for a year.
If a worshipper spends an average of N1,000 during each of their  visits, Osun will rake in a whopping N10.4 billion in a year from what the editorial prefers to demonise as a ‘dangerous religious venture’.
At best, the editorial would pass for a fallacious concoction lacking in merit, reason and veracity. One wonders how PUNCH’s argument that religion is purely a private organization affair where government interventions amount to taboos can be sustained.
The Roman Emperor, Constantine the Great, began building the Old St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City between 319 and 333 AD. Today, the Basilica is famous as place of pilgrimage and attracts many visitors to the Vatican. Services at St. Peter’s have been recorded to draw audiences in large numbers from 15,000 to 80,000 people, both within and outside the Basilica. Even though Osun may not be able to finance a monumental structure as the Basilica in this modern day, the dream of an Interdenominational Worship Centre has tremendous potential to attract audiences to the tune of the proposed 200,000 capacity given the attention Nigerians pay to worship today.
But if history is too remote for the editorial to grasp, there are contemporary interventions of government across the world on issues of religion.
If governments have no business with religions, why do they spend money to maintain the religious shrines and monuments in Saudia Arabia and Israel; attracting millions of people every year? Does religious tourism in some of world’s most visited shrines not constitute significant percentage of their GDPs?
The National Ecumenical Centre and the National Mosque both in Abuja enjoy massive government patronage. As a matter of fact, President Obasanjo, as sitting President played very significant role in the completion of the National Ecumenical Centre which is now called the Church of Nigeria in 2004 after it had been abandoned for almost 16 years.
The PUNCH did not write a negative story let alone an editorial when Akwa Ibom and Bayelsa states hosted and paid for massive crusades last year, where very sizeable chunk of states fund went into bringing scores of foreign gospel singers from across the globe.
Every year, states and the federal government sponsor pilgrims to Mecca and Jerusalem. So, where is the separation of state from religion for which PUNCH has been very vociferous against Aregbesola?
The central mosque Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos and the Chapel of Light church beside it belong to the Lagos state government. There is a Chapel inside the Villa, built and maintained by government. If Osun builds an interdenominational place of worship that people can use for revivals and retreats, shouldn’t the state government be encouraged?
The attempt to whip up sentiment over the land acquired for the project failed woefully. Massive food production remains one of the major agenda of the current administration with noticeable growers’ activities through the carefully established schemes such as the Osun Rural Enterprise and Agricultural Programmes (OREAP). Through this scheme, thousands of hectares of land have been acquired and cleared free of charge and allocated to serious-minded farmers. Farm settlements in Mokore, Ifon-Orolu, Ago Owu, Ila, Iwo and others are testimonies to the very active and result-oriented farming investments in Osun. An equal amount of energy is devoted towards creation of cooperative groups to create veritable platforms for farmers to access financial supports for agriculture purposes.
Today, Osun remains a very peaceful state with the administration’s carefully plotted development programmes which are visible in health, agriculture, tourism, security, youth empowerment, education and infrastructure.
It is sad to note that while no one has raised objection against the construction of this worship centre, a national daily of PUNCH’s profile is inciting sections of the populace against the government. Or how else do we define PUNCH’s advice to Christians never to accept this “ greek gift” and its request to adherents of other faiths to demand for equivalents of this worship centre even if they have no reasons to so do.
We must ask what the interest of the PUNCH is in stoking religious hostility in this part of the country that is reputed over the years for tolerance and accommodation. It began with Hijrah holiday, School uniform, education reform and now committing public fund to building a Christian Religious Centre. In all of this a major strand is obvious which is to portray the Governor as a bigot that is on an Islamist agenda that the Christians must resist. This perspective is not only wrong it is divisive, mischievous, poisonous and very dangerous.
A newspaper’s noble role should be to inform and educate the people; not to urge them to take negative actions which they never felt was necessary and called for.
Just like the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Aregbesola’s administration’s decisions are premised on reasons, not sentiments, benefits not disadvantages. Awolowo was a Christian; yet history has it that he established the first Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board in the defunct Western Region because he saw the need for this body based on the relevance of pilgrimage to Mecca as integral part of the Islamic faith. Awolowo did not establish an equivalent Christian Pilgrims Welfare Board at that time just to please Christians.
The PUNCH is a respected media house in Nigeria, and controls substantial readership which surpasses most other newspapers. Over the years, the reputation was built with strict adherence to all the principles and ethics of responsible journalism. The assumption that writers have checked their facts thoroughly and have drawn conclusions which can reasonably be gleaned from those facts, are factors which come with the terrain which the Punch has enjoyed so far.
It is disastrous to note that these are what the national daily wants to stake in what now appears to be a self-appointed mission to promote disunity and cause disaffection in the land.
As a government, we recognize and respect the newspaper’s rights to its views. But as an institution that wants to be respected for its views, such rights must be exercised in the most cautious manner lest it makes itself a willing tool in the hands of those bent of truncating the development and liberation of our people.
 

 
…Makes case for nationwide adoption of scheme  
It was a historic moment for Nigeria and Africa on Wednesday as the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) in the House of Commons, London, United Kingdom commended the Osun Elementary School Feeding and Health Programme (O’MEALS) as a successful model to be copied worldwide.
Governor of the State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola received loud applause as he made eloquent statistical presentation before the parliamentary body during which he advocated the use of biometric registration of beneficiaries of the Home Grown School Feeding programme worldwide to eliminate corruption and guarantee transparency.
To guarantee sustainable future for Nigeria, the Governor called for the adoption of O’MEALS programme across the nation with appropriate legislative backing and extend it to the first nine years of schooling
At the meeting presided over by Lord Cameron of Dillington, Governor Aregbesola submitted before the world audience gathered in Committee Room 9 of the House of Commons that technology remained the best way out to address the concerns of development partners and international donors on the issue of corruption.
Addressing the concerns of development partners on what was referred to as all-pervading corruption through which project funds were usually lost in the past, the Governor expressed the conviction that once beneficiaries of the programme are registered biometrically, banks that are linked with the programme funding would rely on the data to process payment and ensure that no fund is lost at the implementation stage.
“Technology remains the only effective way to remove corruption from the implementation of the Home Grown School Feeding programme. Once the technology of biometric registration is introduced for beneficiaries, the data is linked to settle the banks and through that, the vendors are paid. Beneficiaries are then able to register their biometric features through the Point of Sales (POS) terminals to guarantee a transparent, corruption-free and efficient HGSF system worldwide”, he said.
All the four speakers including Professor Donald Bundy, the Lead Health and Education Specialist of the World Bank, Mr. Peter Rodrigues, the Chief of School Feeding and Chronic Hunger Unit of the World Food Programme (WFP), Ms. Boitshepo Bibi Giyose of NEPAD and Professor Josephine Kiamba, the Senior Technical Adviser of the Partnership for Child Development, Imperial College, London lauded Governor Aregbesola for successfully implementing the O’MEALS despite the challenging financial situation of his state.
Describing the Osun model of school feeding programme as worthy of emulation by all African countries, Professor Donald Bundy of the World Bank observed that the scheme had become the safety net to ensure that food gets to the poorest children in many countries of the world if the community based implementation strategies of Governor Aregbesola were adopted.
Speaking in the same vein, Mr. Peter Rodrigues of the World Food Programme noted that then State of Osun had shown practical ways to achieve the best result as the cost per child, per day and per annum demonstrated by Governor Aregbesola clearly explained the fact that Home Grown School feeding programme saves money and guarantees food security.
Promising that WFP would in the next six months come out with evidence to back this assertion, Rodrigues assured that Home grown school feeding model of the State of Osun had shown that it not only saves “a lot of money. It is very complex and we all need to get the local governments to buy into it and change the mindset of the host govt”.
They then urged the Federal Government and other state governments in Nigeria and across the African continent to adopt the O’MEALS model of Governor Aregbesola to tackle the challenges of food security, youth development, nutritional values of food for youthful population, health and educational administration as well as food security needs of their societies.
The Governor recalled that from April 30, 2012 when the programme was rebranded as O’MEALS to December 31, 2013 making a total of 330 school days, enrolment at Elementary schools jumped from 203,858 to 252,793 pupils representing an increase of 24 per cent.
According to him, his administration had committed N3,813,700,000.00 to the implementation of the school feeding programme that covered pupils from primary one to four.
Aregbesola stated further that “the cost per child per year was N15,100.00 or £57.60p while the cost per child per day was N45.70 or £0.17p. In the same breath, 3,100 women were appointed and re-trained as community-based food vendors while 462 out-growers of fish were successfully empowered for massive fish production to cater for the needs of the programme locally”.
The governor stressed further that in line with his promise two years ago to introduce the highly nutritious cocoyam to the nutrition timetable of the pupils, “our administration mobilized a professor from the state university to undertake the training of 1,000 farmers including 90 women in the pink cocoyam rebirth scheme”.
Governor Aregbesola who expressed the hope that other states of Nigeria and the Federal Government would adopt the Osun model of the school feeding programme called on technical/development partners and international donors to support the State of Osun in the task of capacity building to achieve biometric registration and digitization of beneficiaries of O’MEALS to guarantee transparency and sustainability.
The Governor, who linked effective learning with healthy student population also called on the international donors and advocacy groups to mount sustained pressures on national governments to adopt the Osun Model of O’MEALS in all their nations’ primary schools while extending it to the first nine years of schooling.
As a result of the successful implementation of O’MEALS in the State of Osun, Governor Aregbesola stated that virtually all-out-of-school children have now been taken into the school system pleading that he would like the Nigerian government “not only to adopt the O’MEALS model in all the nation’s primary schools but most importantly extend it to the first nine years of school in Nigeria”.
His words: “We require more support from our technical partners in the area of capacity building to achieve biometric registration and digitization of beneficiaries O’MEALS programme to guarantee transparency and efficient resource management”.

It was a historic moment for Nigeria and Africa yesterday as the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) in the British House of Commons, London, commended Osun State’s the Home Grown School Feeding (HGSF) programme, tagged O’Meals, as a successful model to be copied worldwide.
Governor Rauf Aregbesola received a loud applause as he made an eloquent and statistical presentation to the British parliament at Committee Room 9.
He suggested the biometric registration of beneficiaries of the programme wherever it is replicated to guarantee transparency.
To guarantee a sustainable future for Nigeria, the governor called for the replication of the programme in all states, with appropriate legislative backing extending it to the first nine years of schooling.
At the meeting presided over by Lord Cameron of Dillington, Aregbesola said technology was the best way to address the concern of development partners and international donors on.
Regretting that project funds were lost to corruption in the past, the governor said once beneficiaries are registered biometrically, banks linked with the programme funding would rely on the data to process payment.
He said: “Technology remains the only effective way to remove corruption from the implementation of the HGSF programme. Once biometric registration is introduced to beneficiaries, the data will be linked to banks and vendors would be paid. Beneficiaries are then able to register their biometric features through the Point of Sales (PoS) terminals to guarantee a transparent, corruption-free and efficient HGSF system worldwide.”
The Lead Health and Education Specialist of the World Bank, Prof. Donald Bundy; the Chief of School Feeding and Chronic Hunger Unit of the World Food Programme (WFP), Peter Rodrigues; Ms. Boitshepo Bibi Giyose of the New Economic Partnership for African Development (NEPAD) and the Senior Technical Adviser of the Partnership for Child Development, Imperial College, London, Prof. Josephine Kiamba, praised Aregbesola for successfully implementing the O’Meals despite the state’s limited finances.
Describing the programme as worthy of emulation by all African countries, Bundy said the scheme would be a safety net for feeding the poorest children in many countries, if Aregbesola’s community-based implementation strategies are adopted.
Rodrigues said Osun had shown practical ways to achieve the best result as the cost per child, per day and per annum demonstrated by Aregbesola clearly showed that the HGSF programme saves money and guarantees food security.
Promising that WFP would, in six months, provide evidence to back this assertion, Rodrigues said: “The programme is very complex. We need to get the local governments to buy into it and change the mindset of the host government.”
Aregbesola said from April 30, 2012, when the programme was rebranded as O’Meals, to December 31, 2013 (330 school days), enrolment in elementary schools increased from 203,858 to 252,793 representing 24 per cent increase.
He said his administration had spent N3,813,700,000 on the programme, which covers pupils from primary one to four.
Aregbesola said: “The cost per child per year is N15,100 (£57.60) and the cost per child per day is N45.70 (£0.17). In the same breath, 3,100 women were appointed and re-trained as community-based food vendors, while 462 out-growers of fish were successfully empowered for massive fish production to cater for the programme.
“In line with our promise two years ago to introduce the highly nutritious cocoyam to the food timetable, our administration mobilised a professor from the state university to train 1,000 farmers, including 90 women, in the Pink Cocoyam Rebirth Scheme.”
Aregbesola expressed hope that other states in Nigeria and the Federal Government would adopt the Osun model of the programme.
He said: “We require more support from our technical partners in capacity building to achieve biometric registration and digitisation of O’Meals to guarantee transparency and efficient resource management.”
THE NATION

Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola has urged his colleagues to be committed to implementation of the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) programmes.
He said this would improve the quality of primary education and give children access to basic education.
Aregbesola was represented by his deputy, Mrs. Titi Laoye-Tomori, at the 11th quarterly meeting of the UBEC management with chairmen of the State Universal Basic Education Boards (SUBEB) in Osogbo.
He urged governors to embrace UBEC’s Home Grown School Feeding (HGSF) programme, which has been rebranded as O-Meals in Osun.
Aregbesola said the programme improved enrolment in primary schools from 155,318 in May, 2012, to over 380,000 this year.
He urged the Federal Government to assist states through UBEC by increasing funds for the meal from N98 million, saying it costs his administration N3.6 billion annually.
Aregbesola, in his speech, titled: “Assuring and sustaining quality basic education delivery in Nigeria”, said UBEC programmes should be reviewed and implemented religiously.
He said basic education should not be handled with levity, going by its role as the first exposure children get.
Suggesting ways to improve primary education, Aregbesola called for the recruitment of professional teachers.
Minister of Education Ezenwo Nyesom Wike urged SUBEB to work with UBEC to improve education.
He urged governors to pay their counterpart funds and use funds provided by UBEC for primary school development.
UBEC Executive Secretary Dr. Dikko Suleiman said the meeting would enable UBEC to improve primary education.
SUBEB Executive Chairman in Osun State Prince Felix Awofisayo listed some gains of the administration in Education as the recruitment of teachers, increase and prompt payment of running grants, prompt payment of teachers’ salary and building of fully equipped schools.
THE NATION

The budget is being creatively used as the engine room for Ogbeni Aregbesola’s Six-Point- Integral Action Plan. This in itself shows that a roadmap is in place and that the budget will be used to implement it.

Presenting the budget the Ogbeni emphasized that “The budget is about growth enhancement and development. It clearly shows the ratio that is of best international practices, in terms of recurrent and capital expenditure. That is why our capital expenditure is far higher than the recurrent expenditure.

“Part of our agenda is to drive the IGR more critically in the 2014 fiscal year. We have to use innovative financing with adequate measure to provide necessary financial structure for most of our developmental project. We will focus clearly on Public Private Partnership (PPP) initiatives, which is the practice going round all over the world now.”

That this year’s budget is lower in size than that of last year’s is not the Ogbeni’s fault or that of his government. It is another fall-out, arising from Nigeria’s defective quasi-federalism. The 2014 budget is slimmer because of the reduction in the oil benchmark from $79 barrel to $77.5 per barrel as well as of course the numerous cases of oil theft with its attendant reduction in remittance to the federation account by the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), and which has also sadly led to drastic reduction in allocations to states.

This is a damning condemnation of the government at the center. It also shows the difference between the two approaches. For example, the central government is just prepared to as it were swim along with the tide. Whereas in contradistinction the government of the state of Osun really wants to make a concerted effort to break out of the vicious circle of boom and bust. Here the difference in approach is clear.

The emphasis placed on growing the state’s internally generated revenue (IGR) is important. It is a very sensible way out of breaking out of the dependency syndrome and unhealthy reliance on the centre. As the Ogbeni stated innovative financing is essential to provide the necessary financial structure for most of the state’s developmental projects. This is a commendable example of the Ogbeni’s capacity to think outside of the box.

Think outside of the box, this contrarian has actually done. Notably for example in being able to use new emerging financial instruments such as the sukuk. A key element here is that the Ogbeni appreciates the need for the use of ‘social capital’. Social capital is more than important at this stage of development. It fulfills the need to direct long-term capital and finance as a way of developing the state’s social and physical infrastructural base. It is only a co-habitation of the state and the private sector through Public Private Partnerships (PPP) that can achieve this.

This the Ogbeni realizes. This means that co-partnerships in this direction will be intensified in the years ahead. The enhancement of prudent management of meager resources and the emphasis on social capital will certainly help to deepen the state’s developmental base. Furthermore it will lead to social cohesion and social solidarity. This has already manifested itself. Osun state has demonstrably known peace for the first time in a long while.

Gone for example are the days of blood and thunder under Oyinlola ancient regime. This is as a result of the ongoing socio-economic transformation. Employment generation for example is absorbing a lot of hitherto restless unemployed youth. A future is now being created for them. This means that there is less canon- fodder for people like the discredited Iyiola Omisore to use and subsequently dump.

We commend the symbol of our aspirations in the state of Osun for the policy thrusts in this budget. Through it the foundation for the construction of a new era in Osun state is being laid. A glorious future awaits a much denied populace. The expected overwhelming endorsement of the Ogbeni through re-election this year will further consolidate this. In the state of Osun, we are on our way to ‘life more abundant.’ And about time too.

OSUN DEFENDER